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Comment

I'm not up on the history of the UK, but it seems to me that they never really overthrew the King... just wrestled the power of "freedom" and "choice" and "Liberty" from the decision powers of King, back around the 13th or 14th Century. (Maybe we should go back and read the Magna Carta... it's been a damn long time since my World History days in 1960).

In any case, since the Magna Carta the Brits get to have their say in their governance and the Monarch still retains the throne and is paid a salary and certain expenses. It seems that "Tradition" and "Honor" are still values held by most citizens of the UK.

A few other countries also have their monarchy's. Spain and the Netherlands are the first to come to mind, though I'm sure there are others.

Thanks. Just doesn't make any sense to me. Kind of surprised the people haven't burned the palace down.

J.C.

Back in 1992 my middle son was working in London during the Windsor Castle fire. He was only 16 but he had one of those jobs that allowed him to travel the World. We told him as long as he kept his grades up we would consider the trips, cultural refinement field trips.

I'm not up on the history of the UK, but it seems to me that they never really overthrew the King... just wrestled the power of "freedom" and "choice" and "Liberty" from the decision powers of King, back around the 13th or 14th Century. (Maybe we should go back and read the Magna Carta... it's been a damn long time since my World History days in 1960).

In any case, since the Magna Carta the Brits get to have their say in their governance and the Monarch still retains the throne and is paid a salary and certain expenses. It seems that "Tradition" and "Honor" are still values held by most citizens of the UK.

A few other countries also have their monarchy's. Spain and the Netherlands are the first to come to mind, though I'm sure there are others.

CWS

Lets not forget the King of Thailand who is worth around $35,000,000,000. After that there is the ones you mentioned and a bunch of Arab countries.

I do not know if it is still on, I saw it a few times, but a friend of mine watched it religiously, but there was a TV show called "lifestyles of the rich and famous", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifesty...ich_and_Famous
the above link has a little info on the show, and says the tag line on the show was,

"champagne wishes and caviar dreams."

and maybe that is all it is, some people "wish" they could live that life, or would at least like to know that it would be like to live a life like that.

Like this crazy wedding coming up, for the Royal kids, what would it be like to have the money to be able to spend it on a wedding like there going to have,
or what would it be like to live in a home or house like the queen mother lives in, and to have the servants and so on,

my guess is many people are wishing there lives were more exciting than what they are, and would like to some how live like they do, or have the means to live like they do,
also lady Diana and this gal her son is going to marry, seem are beautiful and seem very, likable, and some mystery that surrounds them, enough to keep what is let out to be exciting, it is like a living soap opera, "As the palace churns",

Push sticks/blocks Save Fingers
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"The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good."
attributed to Samuel Johnson
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PUBLIC NOTICE: Due to recent budget cuts, the rising cost of electricity, gas, and oil...plus the current state of the economy............the light at the end of the tunnel, has been turned off.

Comment

It's a lot like owning a "Harley".... If you have to ask, you probably won't get it!

Seriously though, I think a lot of American's don't get it. We have I guess, by our very nature, a certain lack of "reverance" for many such things. In England, as well as in many other places in the world, there is a certain mindset of "place"... call it honor, tradition, or just plain old craziness, but some simply takes pride in who they are, what others "are" and what certain things "are".

For example, the "Royals". While they can often be the subject of ridicule by the press, they "are" to most people a matter of respect and pride... a national monument of sorts, I suppose. There are many other things that fall into such mindsets... monuments, fields of ancient battle, and even more modern things like machinery: belt driven shops, old steam locomotives, and even "MG's".

A friend of mine who used to be a service tech for Merganthaller (old printing presses) used to spend a lot of time in the UK. He used to tell me how amazing it was that you could find machines well aged, still polished and running perfectly. ("Machinist's", he once told me, "worked with a rag in one hand, constantly wiping the grease and oil and ink, keeping the machines spotless".... compared to the U.S. where even a new machine looked like it was a hundred years old with the sloppiness of the operator's.)

A sense of "place" can be a good thing, as a butler, or any "position" in life can and should be done with a sense of pride. That is not to say that "ambition" is a bad thing, but there is something to be said for having it under control. Likewise, there is absolutely nothing wrong with simply taking pride in carrying on a family tradition or taking to a calling, that may well be perceived by others as "old fashioned".

My FIL, (Italian) used to joke that if the Colliseum was in America, we would have long since torn it down and today it would either be a shopping mall or a landfill; likewise, we would have either torn down or straightened the "Leaning Tower of Pisa." Such are the ways of America where we have less of a reverance for such things. There are exceptions of course, but it's hard to think of any at the moment.

Comment

It's all B.S. to me. Giving any recognition to these positions is a choice of stupidity. I do understand from centuries ago with the traditions & education of how the masses could follow this thinking.

But for now, they're just making a conscious or unconscious decision to be stupid.

Someone won a war or killed someone long ago & by strength or finance declared themselves to be "King".

Following this same system of recognition, then anyone could imprison or take out the "Royal Family", declare themselves to be the new "King", and all the people would be in agreement with it declaring "Hail to the new King and Queen...."